Lately I have been thinking about Distributor-Supplier Etiquette; or should I say the lack there of. As our industry accelerates through technology and demographic changes, we find ourselves with many new players on both sides of the distributor/supplier relationship. Training for supplier/manufacturer employees is directed toward products, customer types and factory programs instead of building a better channel.  In addition, the demographics in our industry are forcing generational interaction; so we find baby-boomers and millennials seated at the same table trying to communicate. The chasm between partners widens; often based on simple lack of professional courtesies.  Miscommunications and friction between distributors and their upstream partners are building.  And, for some strange reason, nobody seems to be talking about it. I want to bring this front and center.  To prime the pump, allow me to share a bit of the bad. A Good Example of a B...

Much has been written about developing and practicing effective leadership skills. Books by Jim Collins, Stephen Covey, Dale Carnegie, Jack Welch and Lee Iacocca, to name just a few, have addressed this topic from several perspectives. Thousands of articles have also delved into this subject. What this blog suggests is that there are a few skills/traits that are common in the most effective leaders of any organization. #1 Honesty and Integrity Great leaders create an organizational culture built on these two core values and hold all employees accountable to them. Without honesty and integrity as fundamental cornerstones of an organization, they will rarely succeed long term. And creating such a culture starts at the top of the organization. Everyone watches the leader and takes their cues as to what is acceptable behavior. Effective leaders must also be trustworthy. They are recognized for always telling the truth and for practicing the highest standards of ethical conduct...

Part III: Key Topics to get the Planning Juices Flowing Joint Planning with Key Supply Partners Not all vendors are created equally. Some have the power to cause our business to accelerate; others don’t. We have proof that companies who plan with their supply partners grow faster than their competition. Lots of companies go through the motions of planning with their partners. If you would like to hear of our proof, give me a call. Major Marketing Activities These can be marketing activities, plans for customer presentations, open houses, trade shows and other such events. Often we observe distributors rushing into events they have known about for a very long time – just because they lacked planning. Major Technology Initiatives What major initiatives can fundamentally change the way you do business? Here we are referring to things like CRM System implementation, implementing pricing tools, rolling out a new software system or warehouse bar-coding projects. Produc...

Part II – Planning Must-Haves Every step of the plan has a due date - when we say we will get something done in the future, the future rarely happens in our lifetimes. However, when we say we will get it accomplished by 3rd quarter and set milestones for the January, March, May and August, results take place. Every step of the plan has a single person responsible for its completion – committees rarely get anything done unless the chairperson takes on the responsibility. The same holds true with departments, groups and other work teams; somebody needs to be responsible for shepherding the results. This doesn’t mean they do all the work, but they must hold others to the course. Plans must be documented and archived – when plans aren’t written and documented they get lost in the shuffle. Employees forget their responsibilities. Later on, disputes arise as to the actual results expected and commitments made. Plans must be reviewed – any plan without periodic review is a waste ...

Part I – The Season for Planning Before we begin, I’m not selling fancy leather bound planners, trendy books on the topic or heirloom quality prayer rugs.  I’m not here to convert you.  I could stand on my head and do double somersaults while I ranted on and on about the virtues of planning.  But all would be for naught.  Either you believe in planning or you don’t.  It’s just that simple. Instead this piece is designed for the believers and latter day converts-- for those who have consciously decided, “If we’re going to plan, we might as well get our money’s worth.”   With a little luck some people will recognize themselves as psychoplanners.  These are the folks with deep-seated allusions of planning.  Instead of believing they’re Napoleon, they conjure themselves as planners.  Allow me to illustrate with a story from my early career. We’ll go back to the world of polyester and leisure suits: the year 1981, the place the o...

It’s a time for reminiscing The big Times Square Ball is about to fall. 2014 slowly shuffles down Memory Lane; and 2015 boldly marches forward. The ghost of Dick Clark’s New Years Rockin' Eve shows past flash through the subconscious of America. TV pundits scour their previous 364 shows for memorable moments. Celebs step onto the red carpet and captivate us with half backed renditions of personal growth. Culture dictates this as the time of year for quiet reflection and forward thinking resolution. Taking momentary advantage of this space in time, let’s reflect: What new bit of technology did we discover in 2014? I personally discovered the power of the mobile app. Mid-year I noticed a young salesperson pull out their tablet and walk a customer through the selection of a complex industrial sensor. With the assistance of the app, this relative neophyte seller displayed the product/application skill of a seasoned veteran. Get ready, this one will impact our world...

As we start our tale, we find ourselves in the 130 year old cottage which serves as the office of River Heights Consulting.   Frank Hurtte, the organization’s founder, seems totally absorbed in his work.   Glancing around the office, we see several mementos of Hurtte’s long association with Kris Kringle and the Santa Organization.   There’s a picture of Kringle carrying his legendary bag.   The likeness of Kris keeling in front of an ancient manger is prominently displayed near a time worn photo of a much younger Frank seated on Kris’ lap.   The phone rings; the answer is a seasonal combination of Christmas Cheer and morning routine.  But in a flash, we see Hurtte spew some of his coffee and snap to attention.  The conversation goes like this: FH:   River Heights Consulting, Frank Hurtte speaking. Elf:   Frank, this is Elf Alabaster Snowball.  You don’t know me, but I know all about you, including that pouting incident back ...